AFS Cinema
Dark Visions
RECEIVED Tue., April 5, 2005
Dear Editor,
I envision a world with no war, hunger, disease, or poverty. I envision a world where there is no prejudice, human oppression, or greed; where no dictators rule with the swords of tyranny and fear. Believe me when I tell you that President Bush is working for this!
I envision a world where we stubbornly consume our future to feed our past, where we destroy our most precious and vital of natural resources – clean air and water – by bull-headedly maintaining our reliance on fossil fuels and minimizing or ignoring completely the use and development of renewable solutions. Believe me when I tell you President Bush is working on this.
I envision a future not so far at all away where once temperate climates become unbearable, where species die at a dizzying rate, where one after one the chain of life is broken, link by link. Oh wait, this is already happening. And believe me when I tell you that President Bush is spending the needed funds to continue studying the problem.
I envision a world where at some point we no longer have that which we as humans need to survive, a situation that many people already experience. I envision a world without humans, where remnants of our civilizations slowly crumble and decay into a horrible eulogy that will continue for millennia unheard. Believe me when I tell you that President Bush, who is seemingly oblivious to the fact that he is in the unique position of guiding the world toward saving change, is on the job and working on it.
These are the visions that wake me in the middle of the night. In these visions there is no longer the grand array of life once supported by this jewel, this mother Earth. We have smothered ourselves out of existence and taken with us war, hunger, disease, and poverty. Where there are no humans, there can be no dictators to rule with the swords of tyranny and fear. On a dead planet there are no political parties. No Christians, Jews, Muslims, or atheists to battle with. Trust me when I tell you President Bush seems to be doing precious little to avoid this vision. But he is most definitely allotting the funds toward the continued study of the problem.
I envision a world with no war, hunger, disease, or poverty. I envision a world where there is no prejudice, human oppression, or greed; where no dictators rule with the swords of tyranny and fear. Believe me when I tell you that President Bush is working for this!
I envision a world where we stubbornly consume our future to feed our past, where we destroy our most precious and vital of natural resources – clean air and water – by bull-headedly maintaining our reliance on fossil fuels and minimizing or ignoring completely the use and development of renewable solutions. Believe me when I tell you President Bush is working on this.
I envision a future not so far at all away where once temperate climates become unbearable, where species die at a dizzying rate, where one after one the chain of life is broken, link by link. Oh wait, this is already happening. And believe me when I tell you that President Bush is spending the needed funds to continue studying the problem.
I envision a world where at some point we no longer have that which we as humans need to survive, a situation that many people already experience. I envision a world without humans, where remnants of our civilizations slowly crumble and decay into a horrible eulogy that will continue for millennia unheard. Believe me when I tell you that President Bush, who is seemingly oblivious to the fact that he is in the unique position of guiding the world toward saving change, is on the job and working on it.
These are the visions that wake me in the middle of the night. In these visions there is no longer the grand array of life once supported by this jewel, this mother Earth. We have smothered ourselves out of existence and taken with us war, hunger, disease, and poverty. Where there are no humans, there can be no dictators to rule with the swords of tyranny and fear. On a dead planet there are no political parties. No Christians, Jews, Muslims, or atheists to battle with. Trust me when I tell you President Bush seems to be doing precious little to avoid this vision. But he is most definitely allotting the funds toward the continued study of the problem.
David Skinner